VANCOUVER — Jesse Marsch doesn’t want to hear any bold proclamations about Canada being the best men’s team in North America or the odds-on favourite to win this summer’s Concacaf Gold Cup. 

Yes, his side is fresh off winning the inaugural Canadian Shield tournament earlier this month. Yes, there’s a sizeable gap in the FIFA world rankings between Canada and Honduras, its opening Gold Cup opponent in Tuesday’s tilt at BC Place — the Canadians are ranked 30th, 45 spots above the Hondurans. 

And yes, Canada boasts players of the calibre of Jonathan David, Tajon Buchanan, Alistair Johnston and a slew of others who play with top European clubs, while the overwhelming majority of players on Honduras’ squad ply their trade in the country’s modest pro league. 

None of that interests Marsch. 

The American coach freely admits he wants to lead Canada to its first Gold Cup crown in 25 years and continue the amazing momentum the team has built up since he took over the reins last May. But at the same time, he’s taking nothing for granted at the Concacaf tournament, almost downplaying the hype about this being the best Canadian men’s team of all time. 

“Look, there’s been talk [from] some people saying that we have the best team, or we are favourites. None of that really matters right now. What matters right now is our focus on this match against Honduras,” Marsch said on Monday. 

“If we were to look back at all of our matches since we’ve been together, I think why we’ve had some successes are because our concentration and focus and detail to what each opponent required, what each tournament required, moment required … We can talk about grander visions, but right now, we’re solely focused on this match against Honduras and making sure that we know what they’re going to challenge us with.” 

It was a sentiment echoed by David, the team’s all-time leading scorer with 34 goals. 

“I don’t think we come in as favourites. I think to be favourites in a tournament, you have to be the one that [won it] the most times. Of course, I know we have a strong team, and we can challenge to win it. But to be favourites, I wouldn’t say it personally,” said David, who has seven goals and two assists in his last nine appearances for Canada. 

Honduras is a team that Canada can’t afford to take lightly. 

Los Catrachos don’t score many goals, but they also don’t concede many and are content to let the other team have the ball, challenging their opponents to break them down. The attacking trio of Anthony Lozano, Luis Palma and Romell Quioto cause defences problems in moments of transition.  

“It’s a team that is very aggressive, and I expect them to defend really hard, to be compact, to not let the game get too open. We’ve used [their recent] two games against Mexico as a bit of a reference point. And what you saw, is in November, that they didn’t give Mexico a lot of space. They made it difficult on them. They were very physical, especially along their back line, and that they were very dangerous on the counter,” Marsch explained. 

Canada shot out of the gate shortly after Marsch’s appointment, reaching the semifinals and finishing fourth at last summer’s Copa América. The Canadians went toe-to-toe with World Cup champions Argentina, and fellow South American heavyweights Chile and Uruguay in their tournament debut, announcing themselves to the rest of the soccer world. 

As a result, the bar has been set higher than ever before for Canada, which desperately wants to be a competitive force on home soil when it co-hosts the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The Gold Cup presents Marsch’s men to prove that the hype surrounding them is genuine. 

“I think that over the last few years, the expectations for this team have grown. And by the way, when I say that, I don’t even mean externally. I mean internally, that we feel strongly that we have a good team, that we have good balance in our team, and we have depth in our team,” Marsch said. 

“A tournament like this is going to test all of those things, and we want to believe that those things are true based on, specifically for me, what the last year has been like. But each match we have is a chance to prove it.” 

The 16-team field at the Gold Cup is divided into four round-robin groups, with the top two advancing to the knockout round. After Tuesday’s match, Canada faces No. 90 Curaçao (June 21) and No. 81 El Salvador (June 24) in Houston. 

There are also some absences for Canada at the Gold Cup, most notably captain Alphonso Davies, who is expected to be sidelined until November with a knee injury. Also ruled out through injury are defenders Moïse Bombito and Sam Adekugbe, and forward Liam Millar. Influential midfielder Stephen Eustáquio will only be available for Canada when/if FC Porto (his pro club) is knocked out of the FIFA Club World Cup. 

The absences allow Marsch to broaden his options ahead of next year’s World Cup by giving young players on the fringes of the starting 11 some valuable playing time at the Gold Cup. 

“We’ve talked a lot internally about developing the overall breadth of the squad. At this tournament, we’re missing some of our back line. … So, we have a chance to bring in a few new players, to challenge a few young players to take on bigger roles, and I think that it’s an exciting proposition for us,” Marsch stated. 

“Guys like [defender] Luc de Fougerolles, guys like [winger] Jaden Nelson, who are younger and still establishing themselves with the national team, I think we’re excited about the potential of what those guys can bring. That will be necessary for us to make a deep run in this tournament; that we get good performances from some of the players that maybe don’t have as many caps. But it’ll be an invaluable experience, no doubt.  

“And I think them integrating themselves into the team, them understanding what their roles are, getting a feel for what it’s like to play on this team, to play with guys like Jonathan [David], all those things will only help them become better players and really prepare us more for what next summer bring.” 

Marsch is suspended for Canada’s first two Gold Cup matches. He was red-carded in a game vs. the U.S. on March 23 in the Concacaf Nations League for protesting with the referee. On top of the automatic one-game suspension, Marsch was slapped with an additional match by the Concacaf Disciplinary Committee in April. Assistant coach Mauro Biello will take charge of the team from the touchline for Canada’s first two matches of the Gold Cup group stage.